Master Craftsman of the Pokemon World

Doublade protested, its mind currently brainstorming, even though as a sword, it probably didn't have a brain!

To defeat it head-on, this human was simply inhuman, even more powerful than the knights who wielded weapons in the past!

But considering he used so many strange items, could it really be considered a head-on confrontation?

Of course, it was!

This guy took action himself!

He didn't use Pokémon to fight it but faced it personally. Whatever items he used were part of his fighting style, and those methods weren't underhanded. The fact that such a powerful human who could withstand its attacks and ambushes defeated it was undeniable!

Forget it; it seems I can't get the gem back. I'll just give it to you!

“Yoyo! Yoyo!”

In Doublade's perception, this human seemed somewhat different from when they were fighting, but it couldn't quite pinpoint the difference. Perhaps it was a change in his aura?

Meanwhile, Goutai's expression turned astonished.

Watching Doublade making those yoyo sounds, he seemed to understand its feelings. The strange cries transmitted into his mind seemed to automatically transform into some understandable system language, carrying a light and hollow echo.

From its language, he could roughly understand its meaning. Even while listening to these words, vague psychic symbols would surface in his mind. Those were probably the psychic characters that could be transcribed?

Was this spiritual knowledge?

“Are you saying that since you lost to me, you'll give me the 'gem'? Is that what you mean?”

“Yo?”

Doublade's blue eye widened!

Huh, he understands what I'm saying?

“Speaking of which, Pokémon have a high level of understanding of human language, while humans can only guess at the general meaning of Pokémon language. This is quite an interesting phenomenon.”

Goutai muttered to himself, then asked:

“But you're not a Pokémon from the nearby area. Even though I found you in the ruins, why did you end up sleeping as an antique in these ruins?”

“Yoyo!”

Doublade stared at Goutai, pondering.

It figured that since the human before it had defeated it and controlled it, his strength must be greater than its own. Facing such a strong person and accepting its defeat, it couldn't be stubborn or deceitful; that wouldn't align with the spirit of a knight.

So, it briefly explained that it was brought by a traveler who knew magical arts and presented to a certain king. There were several Doublade brought along with it, and they were all bestowed upon the king's knights and granted gems.

“A sword from a kingdom long ago, a tribute brought by travelers, that makes sense. In ancient times, merchants in some places would bring rare Pokémon and goods to distant lands, promoting cultural exchange between the two regions, which would indirectly lead to the creation of regional forms of some Pokémon. Speaking of which, you don't even remember the name of the kingdom? How careless.”

Goutai remarked, and Doublade spun around a few times, emitting protesting yoyo sword sounds.

It wasn't carelessness, but Pokémon don't remember troublesome things other than their masters!

Why think so much!

“But it doesn't really matter. Anyway, that kingdom probably fell. It seems there were indeed some kingdom ruins near the Johto region, north of Mt. Moon, and there's even a small kingdom that continues to this day.”

The world of Pokémon contained strange small kingdoms scattered in the corners of each region, each with its own unique set of strange laws and holding considerable social status.

But long ago, these kingdoms weren't as weak as they were now; they might have been behemoths dominating entire regions.

Heading southeast from the Shinju Ruins into the Mt. Moon mountain range, one would find some kingdom ruins.

Doublade emphasized again that the traveler who knew magical arts carried many treasures, and it was just a foreign Pokémon that was captured and presented as tribute.

Just as Goutai said, those merchants traveling around the world always did such things, bringing unique products from one region to another and integrating them into local cultures and civilizations, even changing the local natural environment and ecology.

For Doublade, what happened yesterday felt like it was still vivid in its mind. The tall castle and the heavily armed soldiers all turned to dust after it woke up from a nap.

The ancient country disappeared, and all records of the monarch vanished without a trace, not to mention those glorious memories, all gone.

But what's gone is gone; there's nothing that can be done about it. After all, it was just a sword and couldn't manage so many things.

However, one thing was genuine.

Doublade couldn't think about such complicated things, and since the country was destroyed and a thousand years had passed, even if it didn't want to admit it, it couldn't be helped. In short, as a knight's sword, if it didn't have a master to serve, it had no meaning to act independently.

Of course, its time as a wandering knight didn't last too long, as it had now been captured by a human again.

But at the same time, Doublade was pondering something.

Something quite bold.

It was a secret that one of its predecessors had told it.

The first king was not chosen by bloodline but by a certain demon beast (Pokémon). The king relied on the power of that demon beast to establish the country and ruled over many lives.

Since the past king had died, then... wasn't the new object worthy of serving, possessing the same qualifications as that king, right before its eyes!

After all, this guy had truly defeated it head-on. If it was someone like this, he would definitely be able to become a qualified...

Doublade was quite excited, leaping up and down towards Goutai, presenting its suggestion!

“Yo!”

“Yo~ Yo?”

Powerful youth!

Do you want to become king!

Strength, no, Nendo Dango, is the reason to be king!

“King? What's so good about being that kind of thing?”

“Ruling over some people and Pokémon... Wait, isn't this a villain route? Why would a Pokémon actively encourage its master to become a villain?”

Goutai waved his hands repeatedly because Doublade's suggestion was too strange.

Saying it wants to assist him in becoming king... Is that how casually it chooses a king? Besides, what's the point of being a king in the modern world? And it even said it wants to rule over other Pokémon and humans!

“Speaking of which, Doublade's final evolution, Aegislash, does have a similar description—it can see the qualities of a king, and the person it chooses will become the new king... But there are many people in the world who own Aegislash, and none of them have become king.”

Doublade became excited: “Yo!”

Hey, you understand quite well!

That's right, it's me—my evolution!

But Goutai immediately poured cold water on Doublade:

“However, choosing a king is Aegislash's job. As a Doublade, you don't seem to have the ability to choose a king, and it seems that the country established by the person who truly listened to Aegislash and became king eventually perished, didn't it?”

“Just like your country.”

Doublade's eyes stared blankly at Goutai.

The two, human and sword, stared at each other for a long time.

Doublade blinked its eyes and suddenly scratched its hilt with its blue ribbon:

“Yo!”

Ah, so that's how it is. No wonder the country was destroyed.

So, my evolution was to blame!

Never mind then!